General Session Speakers

Sunday, March 25
3:45-4:45 p.m.
Opening Keynote: How to Change the World with Your Bare Hands
Speaker:Cory Booker, JD, MA Session # 5100
1.0 CH
Track: P 

The Honorable Cory A. Booker is in his second term as Mayor of Newark, New Jersey. He refused to accept the status quo, and his administration dramatically transformed a blighted urban environment into a city of economic abundance, with a climate that nurtures and empowers individuals and families. Newark, New Jersey, has now set national standards for urban transformation, with a significant reduction in crime, and smart growth that has raised the quality of life for all its citizens.  By marshaling existing resources and engaging its citizens, Cory Booker has attracted millions in philanthropic partnerships to help fund its bold transformation.

Like Newark before Cory Booker, our health care system is broken, fragmented, and failing; a situation created by many years of benign neglect. We are faced daily with the challenge of providing quality care in an environment already overburdened, and underfunded. But each time we enter our facility, whether in a clinical or managerial role, we are by nature of our profession, on the front line of patient safety. We are patient advocates before, during, and after surgery; and it is a serious responsibility.  Attend opening session and hear Cory Booker’s powerful message about the power of one, and the role and impact of personal responsibility on the lives of our patients. He will discuss change management, and how it begins with the courage to lead.  This opening session is not to be missed. You will remember why you became a nurse, and reexamine your commitment to safe patient care.  You will leave believing that you can change the world with your bare hands.  

Monday, March 26
10:00-11:30 a.m.
General Session: Spite in White: Do Nurses Really Eat Their Young (And Other Folks They Don't Like)?
Speaker: Cheryl Dellasega, PhD Session # 5111
1.5 CH
Track: P
Nursing myths abound, but none is so pervasive as the belief that emotional subterfuge and subtle "word wars" are part of our professional identity. This discussion of relational aggression and female bullying will take a closer look at the way nurses interact and how difficult situations can lead to poor mental and physical health as well as attrition. Participants will be challenged to assess their own relationships with women, on and off the job.

Monday, March 26
3:30-5:00 p.m.
Jerry G. Peers Lecture & Awards
Speaker:Dr. Don Berwick, the United States’ leading advocate for high-quality health care, and former administrator for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and founding CEO for the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI).
Session # 5122
1.2 CH
Track: P 

Tuesday, March 27
5:15-6:30pm
Foundation General Session-Surviving Together: A Personal Journey
Speakers: Bob Woodruff, JD, BA; Lee Woodruff, BA Session # 5143
1.0 CH
Track: P
Bob Woodruff, ABC Anchor/Reporter and survivor of an Iraqi roadside attack, is joined by his wife, Lee, for a compelling joint presentation in which they share their thoughts and feelings about the event that nearly cost Bob his life. Recounting the agonizing days, weeks, and months following the attack, Bob and Lee discuss Bob's slow crawl back to himself after the uncertainty about his medical outcome, as well as the numerous surgeries and the countless hours of rehabilitation. In addition, Bob and Lee describe how the event tested them as a family and as a couple, and how their triumph over adversity taught them significant lessons about life: about persevering, about holding hope and faith in equal measures—even when the prognosis is bleak—and about the indomitable human spirit.

Wednesday, March 28
5:15-6:45pm
General Session:
Every Nurses Commitment: What the IOM Future of Nursing Report Needs from You
Speaker: Michael R. Bleich, PhD, RN, FAAN Session # 5167
1.0 CH
Track: P
This presentation will provide a clarion call to each nurse to know and take action on from the IOM report, The Future of Nursing:Leading Change, Advancing Health.” The report itself is a statement of nursing’s potential response to rapidly emerging needs from shifting demographics and economics in our country. Nursing has the human capital to stretch our potential for impact in multiple ways beyond traditional roles and functions. This session will provide sound ideas for individual and collective action to reinvigorate our calling as nurses.

Thursday, March 29
3-4pm
Closing Session: No One Can Stop You But You!
Speaker:Walter Bond Session# 5198
1.0 CH
Track: P
Walter Bond delivers a solid message of personal accountability, overcoming adversity, power of confidence, and pursuit of excellence to the highest degree. You will be rocked with enthusiasm, inspired to work as a team, and motivated to achieve to the highest level regardless of the pressures or the continual changes in your work setting. When you leave, you will know you have been Bonded by Mr. Accountability. You will return to your career to influence safe perioperative practice through communication, innovation, collaboration, and ultimately continuous improvement.